Philadelphia General Manager Sam Hinkie has already helped him former employer, the Houston Rockets, once in his short tenure as General Manager. Hinkie took first round draft pick bust Royce White off their hands, and he may be doing a similar thing for a second consecutive off-season.
According to NBA writer Jake Fischer, the Sixers are engaged with the Rockets to acquire one-time wonder Jeremy Lin. The four-year pro has fallen behind on Houston’s depth chart after starting 82 games in 2012-13. The gist of the deal would be to give Philadelphia, who has roughly $30 million in space, Lin in order to clear space.
Houston, already with two big stars in town with Dwight Howard and James Harden, are looking to pursue either LeBron James or Carmelo Anthony. They’ll need some serious money to get either one, and hence why they want to unload any significant money on their bench. According to Sixers insider Jon Johnson, Lin is due nearly $15 million for 2014-15.
But there’s more. The Rockets have posted a billboard to welcome Carmelo Anthony for his visit to Houston. The problem is, which Lin seemed to have noticed, is that the billboard features Anthony wearing his No. 7 in the jersey—the same number Lin wears.
So we have a team in need, a team in leverage that probably wants to acquire picks and can take on space, a player that seems offended and likely wants to get out, and a pair of teams that have a history of making this type of connection. All things considered, it seems like there’s a good chance a move can take place here.
